Emile Cairess leads British challenge at Napoli City Half
Written by I Dig Sports
Leeds City runner travels to Italy this weekend for his first race of 2024 over 13.1 miles
It could be a big week for Emile Cairess. The 26-year-old is expected to be named in the first wave of British marathon selections for the Paris Olympics, whereas on Sunday (Feb 25) he takes to the roads in the Napoli City Half Marathon in Italy.
It will be Cairesss first race since New Years Eve when he finished a close runner-up to Marc Scott in the Ribble Valley 10km. A natural target will be his PB of 60:32, too, which was set in 2022. The British record, meanwhile, is Farahs 59:32 from Lisbon in 2015.
The Leeds athlete ran 2:08:07 on his marathon debut in London last year and this month saw his training partner, Phil Sesemann, also beat the Olympic qualifying standard of 2:08:10 by six seconds in Seville.
This is the 10th running of the Napoli City Half and the course is not only scenic but quick. In 2022, for example, Yeman Crippa ran an Italian record and course record in Napoli of 59:26, wheras Viola Cheptoo of Kenya holds the womens course record with 66:47.
Cairesss rivals on Sunday include Brian Kwemoi of Kenya, who ran 59:37 in Beijing last year. Kenyans Benard Biwott and Anthony Kimtai, whose bests are 59:44 and 60:30 respectively, are also expected to figure.
Napoli City Half Marathon
Watch out as well for Mosinet Geremew of Ethiopia, the world silver medallist in the marathon in 2019 and 2022 whose best is a swift 2:02:55, while his half-marathon best is 59:11. Also from Ethiopia, Mulugetu Debasu has a marathon PB of 2:06:36.
In the womens race Angela Tanui of Kenya, the 2019 winner in Napoli, returns to the event and has a best of 67:16. Sofiia Yaremchuk, the recent Italian marathon record-breaker with 2:23:16, is also in the line-up.
Race director Carlo Capalbo says: We are looking forward to witnessing two very closely fought races and with such great competition from around the world lining up here in Napoli we are excited at the possibility of new course records in both the mens and womens events.
The event is live streamed on Sunday. See below.
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